New fiscal year offers fresh start for addressing Alaska’s economic futureOn June 29, I signed into law the budget bills passed by the legislature. For fiscal year 2016, we will spend $1 billion less than we spent last year. This is a 19 percent overall reduction with an average 13.5 percent cut to executive branch agencies, and cuts of over 30 percent in the Departmen...

Students get free physicalsMore than 60 students received free physicals on Saturday as part of an effort to help reduce the cost of high school sports. Students filled out paperwork and waited their turn for their physical at Kodiak High School. Last summer, Sarah Nugent, the dance team coach at Kodiak Island Borough Scho...

Post 17 splits league games with BartlettJoe Schactler couldn’t have picked a better time to send his first career home run into orbit. The right-hander launched a three-run shot over the right-field fence that jump-started Kodiak Post 17 to a come-from-behind 14-5 thumping of Bartlett in an American Legion AA league baseball game on Sa...

Public Safety Blotter: July 14July 4 At 1:04 a.m., police cited a driver in the 12th Avenue and Rezanof Drive area for having no proof of insurance. At 1:26 a.m., police admonished a driver in the Oak and Thorsheim streets area for not having headlights on. At 1:34 a.m., police cited a driver in the High and Thorsheim streets...

Outdoor Kodiak: Time to get serious about pink salmonMasses of pink salmon may not crowd river mouths just yet. But their numbers along beaches have grown so much it’s time to get serious about fishing. In fact it’s a good thing the river mouths won’t clog with them for another few weeks. While it’s a treat to see great masses of pink salmon undula...

Kodiak all-stars end with a victoryKodiak’s intermediate Little League all-stars finished District I baseball pool play with a 6-3 win over Homer on Saturday in Knik. The team ended pool play with a 1-3 record and did not qualify for the Sunday’s semifinals. “(It’s) nice to end on a win,” Kodiak coach Bryan Ellsworth wrote in a te...

Public Safety Blotter: July 13July 3 At 12:39 a.m., a 911 caller reported a fight on West Marine Way. A man was arrested on suspicion of violating conditions of release. Around 4:02 a.m., police conducted two bar checks downtown. At 8:51 a.m., police admonished a driver on Mill Bay Road for not stopping completely at a stop s...